


earthly wanderers

by AFireInTheAttic



Series: wfn winter wonderland 2018 [3]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fairy Tale, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Art, Digital Art, F/F, Fairy Tale Curses
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-25
Updated: 2018-12-25
Packaged: 2019-09-26 22:47:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,036
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17150513
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AFireInTheAttic/pseuds/AFireInTheAttic
Summary: Once upon a time, there was a beautiful princess who was cursed to be silent.





	earthly wanderers

**Author's Note:**

  * For [DarkAliceLilith](https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarkAliceLilith/gifts).



> Counted in for the twelfth prompt of wfn winter wonderland: "hope"

_Once upon a time, there was a beautiful princess who was cursed to be silent._

* * *

Maia had never been sure what exactly her parents did for her to end up cursed, but she supposed this was just the sort of thing that happened to princesses. That's what Isabelle had said, anyway, the first time they met. It made as much sense as anything else, so at this point, she tried not to think about it. Being upset at her parents was useless at this point—it wasn't like she could have ever kept the curse from happening.

She sighed, running her fingers through the currents as she walked, searching for any sort of clue. The sand was rough on her feet. She kept imagining that, eventually, her feet would grow numb to it, but even after days of this, each step brought a small frown to her face.

Not that she would give up.

The sun was at the horizon, blinding her—not for the first time, she wished she could cry out Isabelle's name. Maybe, if she could, and Isabelle could hear her, she'd at least have a direction to walk in. As it was, she felt completly lost. 

* * *

_The queen was very concerned that the princess wouldn't be able to cry out for help, so she kept her mostly inside the castle, studying in the library and passing notes to servants, ladies-in-waiting, and anyone else who was willing to take a second to read whatever she was thinking about._

* * *

Her gown was soaked through, even though she'd never gone higher than waist deep. She was beginning to wonder if Isabelle was any where near the lake. It felt like she was walking in circles. If only she'd held on to her hand just a little tighter, if only those lights hadn't attracted the cunning fae. If only Isabelle hadn't had some strange sense of nobility, like she ought to be in charge of breaking Maia's curse.

If only the fae hadn't realized just how much Isabelle was willing to bargain on the off chance that she might one day hear Maia's voice.

"Soulmates," the fae had whispered in Maia's ear. "Perhaps. If you can prove it..."

And then Isabelle had been gone, and Maia had _known_. If she didn't find her, she was lost. It didn't even matter to her that she might never speak—it certainly hadn't slowed her down before.

What would slow her down was another night. The darkness meant searching was fruitless, and with resignation, she left the lake.

* * *

_One day, the princess thought to take her studying out to the castle grounds, where the sun warmed her skin and the breeze made her dress sway. She picked a spot she could rest undisturbed, among a few bushes that provided shade and the sweet scent of flowers. When she set her book down, she spied a gardener with beautiful dark hair and a sparkling smile._

* * *

She can hardly sleep, waking up every hour or so, her arms stretched out. Isabelle, she pleads silently. Isabelle.

* * *

_Their eyes meet, and the world fills with color. Or, the world rushes with sound. Or, the world feels like a cool breeze on a warm summer's day. Or, the world feels comlete for the first time, the harmony finally joining in with the melody._

* * *

At sunrise, she starts her search again. She leaves the lake today, wondering if instead they might have hidden her in a tree. These woods belong to Maia's family, but she sees Isabelle every where. The yellow flowers she would tend to in the castle, the daisys she would make jewelry out of, the grass she would braid into baskets just for fun.  
Maia stops to pluck a flower, just because she misses her. She inhales. The smell is sweet, soft. She feels herself smiling, despite the situation. She opens her eyes again, and...there. What's that?

* * *

_They were drawn to each other, the princess and the gardener. Neither knew who began moving first, only that they met in the middle, hands outstretched. They might have danced, they might have kissed—instead, their fingers twisted together in a perfect promise, and the gardener whispered her name._

* * *

It's a lock of dark hair, twisted around the stem of a flower. Maia takes it, rubs it between her fingers. It's been chopped off inexpertly, but she would recognize it anywhere. Isabelle is close. 

* * *

_And the gardener whispered that she would break the curse._

* * *

She scouts the area for a few hours, searching high and low before she finds a bit of Isabelle's yellow dress, caught in a thorn. She collects it and tucks it into her pouch, next to Isabelle's hair.

Then, she closes her eyes. Being silent, she is underestimated. People speak their mind near her, telling secrets and schemes without thought. If she listens...really listens...she might hear it.

* * *

_The princess wants to believe the gardener, but her parents have been trying to break her curse ever since she was a child. She wonders if anything ever could break the curse. The gardener doesn't wonder, just promises, and for once, the princess believes._

* * *

She ends up walking alongside the lake again, but just beyond the bubbling of the water, she can hear it—faint music, a bit too fast to be entirely human. It gets louder as she walks, and she wonders if this is a new part of the lake, or if she simply had to step away to sense it.

Either way, she's almost upon it. 

* * *

_True love's kiss, the gardener reminds her, breaks all curses._

* * *

Maia has seen drawings of fae parties, wild and free in a way humans don't try to understand. The reality of it is somehow even more. But she is present and solid, and she has found Isabelle, sitting at a table with a full plate.

She can't help herself—she runs, pushing past several faeries, uncaring of whether or not it might be considered rude.

Isabelle is on her feet as soon as she sees her, and when the two meet—

True love's kiss.

"Isabelle," she whispers, aloud for the first time.

"Yes," Isabelle cries. "Yes."

* * *

_And they lived happily ever after._

__  



End file.
